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Woodfines Host Specialist Conference for the Road Transport Industry

On Tuesday 22 November, Woodfines Solicitors’ Road Transport team hosted a Conference providing legal updates and information specific to the industry to delegates at Turweston Flight Centre, near Silverstone Circuit.

The morning began with hearty breakfast rolls, provided by the onsite “Flying Pig Cafe”, before presentations on the following:

Partner, Mike Hayward opened the Conference with advice on compliance and enforcement, specifically covering the use of mobile phones by drivers and the increasing problem of clandestine entrants for international Operators.

He was followed by Maria Gallucci, an expert from Woodfines’ Employment Law team, who continued looking at the issue of drivers using mobile phones and what steps employers could take to tackle this issue, as well as the recent court case concerning taxi app, ‘Uber’, and its effect on driver’s employment status for the haulage and passenger industry.

Road Transport lawyer, Michelle O’Garro, addressed a number of the common pitfalls experienced by Operators facing a call up to Public Inquiry, before Kathryn Dale from the firm’s Commercial Litigation team provided an informative look at disputes frequently experienced by the sector, and how they could be resolved.

Motoring specialist, Nathan Taylor-Allkins, followed this with a topical look at the ‘perils of posting’ on social media, and the problems that can be caused by social media updates both within the sector and in a criminal context following an incident.

Finally, the Conference was joined by key speaker and East of England Traffic Commissioner, Richard Turfitt, who advised delegates on how to prepare for and avoid Public Inquiries, and how Operators could help themselves should they find their business in an enforcement situation.

The Freight Transport Association (FTA) were also on hand to provide information and answer questions from delegates, as were various additional members of Woodfines’ Road Transport team.

The conference was closed by Mike Hayward who emphasised the need to seek advice in the event of enforcement given that early intervention is key. The Transport team offers a full range of support services to the industry including employment, commercial, regulatory and litigation advice; the aim being to provide proactive support to businesses to reduce the risk of non-compliance and to maintain the reputations of businesses and those employed by them.

Feedback from the Conference described it as an “excellent opportunity”, “very valuable” and “very informative”, and Woodfines is pleased to have again had the opportunity to share information with the sector, aimed at benefitting the industry and its practices as a whole

Our next Road Transport Conference will be held in May 2017. For details and to register your interest, please contact Kerry Ransby on kransby@woodfines.co.uk